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Bowman park. The reason we freecamp.

8/4/2015

16 Comments

 
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We were absolutely not prepared for what we found when we turned up to Bowman park to free camp for the night. Lots of people had left good comments about it on wikicamps but nothing could have prepared us.

It’s hard to describe it really. From what we can gather, it used to be a camp-ground where school groups would come. There are beautiful old buildings that used to be dormitories, bathrooms, kitchens, study halls etc abandoned in various stages of decay. There is a closed restaurant. There is an entire building called “reptile house” that lies abandoned. Then there are the gardens. There are manicured paths through the garden that has been sectioned into different climate zones. The gardens are just full of native plants it’s amazing. There are bee hives. There is an old aviary with a sole male peacock still roaming freely around the gardens. It’s kind of surreal because some of the buildings seem like they could be from the 1800’s - they are all built in a traditional brick style. But some are clearly still being used today. There is a sign on the door to the restaurant advertising it for weddings and special occasions and it would be just perfect for both. The gardens are partly in ruins, but then have new signs and clear paths. The aviary is falling down but the peacock is still happily roaming around. It’s surreal. It’s beautiful. I would have loved to have seen it in its heyday.

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There are also new features. It’s clear the council is trying to bring life back to it. There are free electric BBQ’s and toilets. There are tables and chairs. We ran into some volunteers who come twice a week to maintain the area. And we saw no less than 10 families come for a stroll through the gardens, a picnic or a bushwalk. I can only imagine the memories the parents and grandparents must have of school camps here in their youth. They have made the park an RV friendly destination now and that is how we came to know of it, and of the town as well! Without that park we would never have come here, and we are so so glad we did. 

There are also a lot of bush walks you can do. We followed some trails and came across a whole other section of the park that used to be for camping. It was so beautiful. It felt both that it hadn’t been used for years, and that it was used in secret quite often. We climbed hills and looked out over the green South Australian landscape and we walked along the Heysen trail (a 1200km trail that stretches from Southern SA to the Flinders ranges). We daydreamed about moving the van to the other side of the river into the old camp grounds but were put off by the 5 locks on the gate. Our overnight stay quickly turned into 2 and as I write this, possibly 3. It’s just such a beautiful place. It’s the perfect mix of old meets new and we kind of don’t want to leave. We just want to keep walking back through the gardens and hiking along the trails and then finishing the day off with some yoga in the middle of the perfectly manicured oval. 

Maybe we will stay a third night. Why not? 

I hope in the future they can revive the camp grounds and gardens. We would most definitely come back again, and quite possibly stay even longer. 

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16 Comments
Susanne Richards link
8/4/2015 06:34:43 pm

The buildings the one iwith rounded steps built by the Bowman Brothers date from about 1870ish and the one in ruins in the garden 1852 and was the original building for "head Station" on the "Crystal Brook run" one of the very early lease hold stations on the state. it is an amazing place web sit www.bowmanpark.com I was one of the volunteers but stepped off the committee 2013 and designed the signs and gardens, and built the native bee wall.

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thetraveljunkies
8/5/2015 05:31:53 pm

Oh wow! Thank you for the information! What an amazing history! And that bee wall was amazing! Is it still functioning?

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Susanne
8/6/2015 02:49:07 pm

I was there this morning and yes looks like the bees are still using it, although it needs some work.
I made a mistake with the dates of the buildings 1852 was when Bowman Brothers took over pastoral lease and about when building with rounded step was built, the wall garden "stable complex"(which is local heritage listed) date a few years earlier as were present as 'improvements' when bowman took it on.
The park area has seen -
 Pastoral Stations-Aprox. 1847-1876
 Farming-1876-1885 (when 100 Sections came through)
 Engineering & Water Supply -1885-1960 (section resumed off the farmer under water act-there is a spring there and the townships close by need water)
 Youth Camps -from 1962-1999
 Speedway- 1960’s,
 Rodeo’s-1970’s,
 Reptile, Flora & Fauna Park- 1990’s

stuart mcdougall
8/4/2015 08:48:25 pm

Great reading on your trip on your holiday sound like you are having fun visiting lost of places so keep up the good travel and have a safe trip.

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thetraveljunkies
8/5/2015 05:32:29 pm

Thank you!! Hopefully we stumble upon more places like Crystal Brook!

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Rebecca Prigg-Hill
8/4/2015 10:06:25 pm

I grew up in Crystal Brook and spent a lot of time out at the Park when they had animals. My parents knew the caretaker and I remember being able to go out there whenever I wanted. It's a shame that there are no annals now but my children still love going for barbecues and exploring. Next to do is tadpole catching. Glad that you enjoyed your stay there.

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thetraveljunkies
8/5/2015 05:33:42 pm

What an amazing time you must have had there! It felt almost like an amusement park - you could just feel the happiness and excitement that it brought to people. I'm glad even part of it has been preserved for your children to build their own memories from.

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Kathy Gould
8/4/2015 11:10:33 pm

Lovely to read reviews. As a kid, we used to stay in the dorms for camps, with our school, or sporting clubs. It was the most awesome place. I recently was there a few weeks ago and would love to see it restored. Such amazing stonework and facilities. We used to be able to walk along the creek bed, collect yabbies. We would come back and cook them in a pot and have a great feast. One of my favourite memories.

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thetraveljunkies
8/5/2015 05:34:48 pm

That must have been amazing! I'm jealous! As a kid it must have been such a wonder-land full of adventure!

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Cheryle Gericke link
8/5/2015 10:44:28 am

We used to go there a lot as kids, our dad used to set up the barbeque and we kids would scatter to all ends of the park until the car horn would call us back. I also remember School camps there and our school musical group would go for camps to practice our Gilbert and Sullivan plays. Wonderful memories.

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thetraveljunkies
8/5/2015 05:35:46 pm

It sounds like a wonderful place to spend a childhood! The freedom you must have felt being able to wander off and explore is something lacking in todays world sadly.

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Meredith Arbon
8/5/2015 02:42:08 pm

I'm a "Brookie" and had the pleasure of living in one of the caretaker's houses for awhile some years ago. Absolutely beautiful out there. I do have to be a bit of a "grammar nazi" though. It is actually "BOWMAN" Park - no "apostrophe s" ..... sorry :/

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thetraveljunkies
8/5/2015 05:37:10 pm

Oops! Sorry!! I'll edit the post now!
What a beautiful place to live for a while! We were quite jealous of the house on the hill!!

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Frank Cope
8/6/2015 08:36:55 pm

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Crystal Brook website admin link
8/10/2015 09:25:43 am

Thank you for your comments and we're glad you enjoyed your stay.

Reply
thetraveljunkies
8/10/2015 05:59:42 pm

Thank you and all the best in the future. xx

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